Another week of YYC Hot Chocolate Fest, another week of tastings.
Dark Chocolate & Cherry Burst by Flower & Wolf
This one was quite the treat, is a strong rival with Cravings for my favorite. The hot chocolate itself was delicious, heavy, and creamy, and the marshmallow was delicious. There was a small hint of cherry, but it’s so small you may still enjoy this even if you dislike cherry.
5/5
Ugandan Vanilla & Sea Salt by Kaffesklatsch
This really is dark chocolate, tasting less sweet and more salty than any other I’ve had. It’s also pleasantly foamy, and has an excellent vanilla flavor and aftertaste.
It also has a great marshmallow.
4/5
Cinnamon Spiced Hot Chocolate by Milano Coffee
While the HC mix itself was a bit watery, the cinnamon was very nice. It also had a large topping of whipped cream with great chocolate shavings on top.
3/5
Dulce De Leche Hot Chocolate Spoon Bomb by REGRUB
This hot chocolate was great! While technically a bit watery when mixed, the marshmallows caramel on the lip of the cup really offsets that. I greatly enjoyed this one.
4/5
Sesame Oat Hot Chocolate by Monogram Coffee
This was not very chocolatey, as the dark chocolate was all at the bottom and didn’t really melt or mix well. That said, the strong oat flavor was nice and pleasant, and the toasted marshmallow was superb.
4/5
Salted Miso Hot Chocolate by Caffe Artigiano
The presentation here is excellent, and the cookie itself is wonderful and melted perfectly. However, the hot chocolate is quite milky, and didn’t taste very chocolately, nor did I taste a lot of miso or HC outside of the cookie itself.
3/5
Fluffernutter Hot Chocolate by Cafe Artigiano
Cafe Artigiano had two different hot chocolates, so we tried both! Unfortunately, this one was also quite milky and not strongly chocolatey. Just as above, the cookie and topping is the focus (and is fantastic), but the neglect of the actual hot chocolate itself still gets neglected
3/5
The Castaway by Ten Degrees Chocolate
This one tasted strongly of coconut and banana, which would be quite nice but the flavors didn’t mix well for me. The banana itself was good though.
3/5 (though my wife rated it 4.5/5)
Classic Chocolat Chaud by Ollia Macarons & Tea
While fairly small, this hot chocolate was very thick and strong. Each of the three cookies were slightly different and they all were wonderful to dip into the HC itself.
4/5
Malted Hot Chocolate Shake by VBurger
This tasted like a fairly standard chocolate shake which, considering that it’s entirely vegan and made with soy milk, is honestly quite impressive. There is a slight soy milk aftertaste, and the straw was definitely too thin for how thick the shake was, but it was still overall enjoyable.
3/5
Minty Matcha Hot Chocolate by Caffe Beano
I couldn’t bring myself to try more than a single sip of this one, as I dislike both mint and matcha, but my wife enjoyed it so here are her thoughts.
The toppings were solid, and the peppermint patty itself was great. However the HC itself was a bit watery, and most of the matcha and mint flavor is in the whipped cream rather than the mix itself
3.5/5
Mini Donut Bacon Hot Chocolate by The Bullet Coffee House
This one was really great. The donuts on top were great, as were the delicious caramel toppings. The (optional) real crumbled bacon on top ended up mixing with the thick hot chocolate below and worked together surprisingly well.
5/5
Bullet Oil Hot Chocolate by The Bullet Coffee House
This cafe also had two HCs, so we tried both, and this one was also really nice. The cinnamon on top and toppings mixed in really brought out the rich hot chocolate itself. It’s more standard than the previous HC, but still really good.
4/5
Thanks for reading!